Cigar and cigarette lighter

ABSTRACT

A lighter for cigars and cigarettes comprises a serrated friction wheel rotated by means of a push-button. A control member, arranged to control operation of a valve interposed between a fuel reservoir and a burner, is actuated by the pushbutton whereby to open the valve only after the push-button has moved through a major portion of its stroke.

1 s Unite States Een 1 1 1 1 3,925,004

Lauri Dec. 9, 1975 CIGAR AND CIGARETTE LIGHTER 2,743,597 5/1956 Newman 431/131 2,943,471 7/1960 Newman 1 431/143 [76] inventor G'ues 5 avenue 3,813,208 5/1974 Malamoud.. 431/277 3111111, 93190 Llvfy Gargan, France 3,816,058 6/1974 Court 431/276 [22] Filed: Apr. 3, 1974 Primary ExaminerCarro1l B. Dority, Jr. [21] Appl' 457544 Attorney, Agent, or FirmLewis H. Eslinger; Alvin Sinderbrancl [30] Foreign Application Priority Data Apr. 6, 1973 France 73.12554 [57] ABSTRACT 52 us. on. 431/131- 431/139- 431/254 A lighter for cigars and Cigarettes mPrises a Serrated [51] km n F23Q 2/08 friction wheel rotated by means of a push-button. A [58] Field of Search 43 1/130 1 3 1 143 150 control member arranged to peration a 131/139; 6 valve interposed between a fuel reservoir and a burner, is actuated by the push-button whereby to [56] References Cited open the valve only after the push-button has moved UNITED STATES PATENTS through a major portion of its stroke. 2,691,882 10/1954 M61161 431/131 5 Claims 2 Drawing Figures US. Patent Dec. 9, 1975 3,925,004

CIGAR AND CIGARETTE LIGHTER BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention This invention relates to lighters for use for example in lighting cigars and cigarettes.

2. Description of the Prior Art Automatic gas lighters are already known comprising a casing containing a gas reservoir, and a burner equipped with a valve, disposed between the burner and the reservoir, of which the opening is controlled through the intermediary of a linkage, or the like, by means of a first push button or the like actuable by the user. A serrated wheel in contact with a flint is rotatable by a second push button or the like likewise actuable by the user.

Such lighters comprise however a large number of parts, which gives rise to a fairly high cost of manufacture and assembly.

Certain such lighters have the additional disadvantage of poor safety since the valve may be opened before the rotation of the serrated wheel and,.as a consequence, the immediate ignition of the flame will not be ensured.

An object of the present invention is to eliminate the disadvantages of these known lighters.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention there is provided in a lighter a casing defining a fuel reservoir, a burner, means providing communication between the reservoir and the burner including a valve and means controlling the opening of the valve, a flint carrier,'friction means for generating fuel-igniting sparks from a flint in the carrier, and a push button connected to drive the, friction means throughout the stroke of the button, and arranged to actuate the valve control means to open the valve only after the button has moved through a major proportion of its stroke.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a part sectional side elevation of one embodiment of a lighter in accordance with the invention; and

FIG. 2 is a section on the line IIII of FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The lighter shown comprises a body 1, on which is mounted a piston 2 slidable in a cylindrical guide slot 3. A push-button 4 formed integrally with the piston 2 is biased to the upper position (as shown) by a helical spring 5 interposed between a part of the body and the push-button 4.

A valve 6 is movably mounted in the body 1 and has an internal passage 7 which connects an external orifice 8 of the valve, forming the burner, to the hollow interior of the body 1, which forms a gas reservoir 9. The valve 6 has a throat 10, which is engaged in a terminal recess 11 formed by a fork of a lever 12 which is supported on a projection 13 rigid with the body 1. This lever 12 constitutes a control linkage of the valve 6.

A cover 14 is pivoted on the body 1 about a pin 15 of a serrated wheel 16 of the lighter flint 17. In a conventional manner, the flint 17 is biased against the serrated wheel 16 by means of a spring 18 interposed between 2 the flint and the body 1. The serrated wheel 16 is disposed between two parallel upstanding arms 19 of the body 1, and the arms l9have their-upper ends 20 rounded off. The lateral walls of the cover 14 are provided with reduced portions 21- likewise of rounded form and complementary in shape tothe ends 20. The

cover 14 serves to enclose the burner 8 of the lighter.

Itwill be apparent that'the arms 19 are resilient and can take up a deformed shape 19a which facilitates the introduction of end portions 15a of the pin 15 into apertures 29 provided in the arms 19. The. end-portions 15a constitute, in fact, pivots.

Lugs 23 are rigid with side walls 25 of? the cover 14 and are engaged in two blind grooves 26, provided in an extension of the push-button 4, and with the aid of openings 27 of the said grooves 26.

It will be noted that the lugs 23 extend parallel to the pin 15. Moreover, the clearance e of each lug 23, when the sliding of the push-button displaces the corresponding groove from 26 to 26b and displaces the said lug from 23 to 23b, is less than, or at least equal to, the length E of the said groove. Finally, the direction of sliding is perpendicular to that of the pin 15, whilst on completion of the sliding, after having been displaced by a distance d, a projection 28 of the push-button 4 interengages withthe lever 12. I

A plate 30, provided with a slot 31 of which that one of its sides which is eccentricin relation to the plane of the said plate, cooperates with teeth 32 rigid with one of the lateral facesof the serrated wheel 16, in order to operate as a ratchet wheel and to permit the rotation of the serrated wheel 16 in onesense. This plate 30 is rotated in relation to the cover 14by, its upper (as shown) edge 30a.

The operation of the lighter which has just been described is simple. When the operator presses the pushbutton 4, the latter slides and is guided by the piston 2 in the cylinder 3 by the sliding engagement of the side wall 33 of the pushbutton with the adjacent peripheral wall 34 of the well or hou sing 35 formed in the upper end of casing l, in which the pushbutton is located. The grooves 26 are subjected to the same displacement as the push-button 4 and engage the lugs 23. The lugs 23 being eccentric with respect to the centre line 22 which extends parallel to the direction of sliding and which pass by the pin 15, are similarly driven and cause pivoting and thus opening of the cover 14. It is to be noted that the length E of the grooves 26 being at least equal to the clearance e of the lugs 23 in the grooves 26, these lugs 23 engage freely in the grooves. When, finally, the push-button 4 has been displaced through the distance d, the projection 28 engages the lever 12 and, raising the valve 6, effects the opening thereof. The burner 8 is thus supplied with gas only after the commencement of rubbing of the flint 17 by the serrated wheel 16, which enables the ignition of the gas while at the same time avoiding the risk of escape of gas. The lighter is then lit.

The release of the pressure on the press button 4 produces the opposite action; first of all closure of the valve 6, then closure of the cover 14.

The lighter is relatively easy to manufacture and to assemble. For assembly, it is only required to engage the lugs 23 in the grooves 26, then the piston 2 into the guide 3 and, finally, by deforming momentarily the resilient arms 19, to introduce the end portions 15a of the pin 15 into the openings 29. The assembly of the cover 14, the serrated wheel 16 and the push-button 4 is then mounted on the body 1. The grooves 26 may, in a mod- 3 ification, be rigid with the cover 14 and the lugs 23 with the push-button 4.

Finally, the push-button 4 is held in the body 1, against the action of the spring 5 which tends to separate them, by the lugs 23. When the cover 14 is fully re-- closed and is in abutment on the upper face la of the body 1, which is disposed opposite to it, the lugs 23 remain engaged in the grooves 26, and become fixed in relation to the body 1, thus preventing any further sliding of the push-button 4. The latter is thus well supported on the body 1.

I claim:

1. A lighter comprising,

a casing having a fuel reservoir therein;

a burner tip mounted in the casing;

selectively operable valve means for providing communication between said reservoir and said burner;

means in said casing for supporting a flint therein;

friction means movably mounted in said casing for generating a fuel-igniting spark upon movement thereof;

at least one lug operatively connected to said friction means for movement therewith;

a pushbutton slidably mounted in said casing for vertical sliding movement with respect to the casing and being operatively connected to said friction means for moving the same to produce a spark upon downward movement of the pushbutton; and

means operatively connecting said pushbutton to said valve means for opening the valve only after the pushbutton has moved through a major portion of its downward stroke;

said pushbutton having a groove formed therein extending generally perpendicularly of the direction of movement of the pushbutton and receiving said lug, thereby to actuate said friction means upon downward movement of the pushbutton, said groove having a length which is at least equal to the amount of clearance required therein to accommodate movement of the lug, in the direction of the groove, during downward movement of the pushbutton;

said pushbutton also including a peripheral wall portion and an elongated piston extending from one side of the pushbutton between and beyond said peripheral wall; said casing including an upper peripheral wall defining a well in the casing and slidably receiving the peripheral wall of the pushbutton therein, a bore slidably receiving said piston, and a helical coil spring coaxially arranged about the pistion in said well between the pushbutton and casing to urge the pushbutton to a normal upmost position with respect to the casing.

2. A lighter according to claim 7 wherein said friction means comprises,

a serrated wheel rotatably mounted in said casing, and said lighter further including a cover pivotally mounted on the casing and arranged to cover an end of the burner, the pivotal axis of the cover being coincident with the pivotal axis of the wheel; said cover being operatively connected to the wheel and bearing said lug.

3. A lighter as defined in claim 2 wherein said groove in the pushbutton is straight and extends perpendicuthe uppermost position of the pushbutton, a predetermined distance selected such that said engaging means does not engage said second end of the lever until said lug has moved a predetermined amount in said groove, thereby to insure that said friction means is producing igniting sparks when said valve is opened.

5. A lighter according to claim 3 wherein the groove is blind and includes .means defining an opening by which the lug is introduced into the groove. 

1. A lighter comprising, a casing having a fuel reservoir therein; a burner tip mounted in the casing; selectively operable valve means for providing communication between said reservoir and said burner; means in said casing for supporting a flint therein; friction means movably mounted in said casing for generating a fuel-igniting spark upon movement thereof; at least one lug operatively connected to said friction means for movement therewith; a pushbutton slidably mounted in said casing for vertical sliding movement with respect to the casing and being operatively connected to said friction means for moving the same to produce a spark upon downward movement of the pushbutton; and means operatively connecting said pushbutton to said valve means for opening the valve only after the pushbutton has moved through a major portion of its downward stroke; said pushbutton having a groove formed therein extending generally perpendicularly of the direction of movement of the pushbutton and receiving said lug, thereby to actuate said friction means upon downward movement of the pushbutton, said groove having a length which is at least equal to the amount of clearance required therein to accommodate movement of the lug, in the direction of the groove, during downward movement of the pushbutton; said pushbutton also including a peripheral wall portion and an elongated piston extending from one side of the pushbutton between and beyond said peripheral wall; said casing including an upper peripheral wall defining a well in the casing and slidably receiving the peripheral wall of the pushbutton therein, a bore slidably receiving said piston, and a helical coil spring coaxially arranged about the pistion in said well between the pushbutton and casing to urge the pushbutton to a normal upmost position with respect to the casing.
 2. A lighter according to claim 7 wherein said friction means comprises, a serrated wheel rotatably mounted in said casing, and said lighter further including a cover pivotally mounted on the casing and arranged to cover an end of the burner, the pivotal axis of the cover being coincident with the pivotal axis of the wheel; said cover being operatively connected to the wheel and bearing said lug.
 3. A lighter as defined in claim 2 wherein said groove in the pushbutton is straight and extends perpendicularly to said piston.
 4. A lighter as defined in claim 7 wherein said means for operatively connecting the pushbutton to said valve means comprises a lever pivotally mounted in said casing having a first end engaged with the valve and a second end located below said pushbutton; said pushbutton including means for engaging the lever to pivot the same during movement of the pushbutton against the bias of said helical spring, said engaging means being normally spaced from said second end of the lever, in the uppermost position of the pushbutton, a predetermined distance selected such that said engaging means does not engage said second end of the lever until said lug has moved a predetermined amount in said groove, thereby to insure that said friction means is producing igniting sparks when said valve is opened.
 5. A lighter according to claim 3 wherein the groove is blind and includes means defining an opening by which the lug is introduced into the groove. 